Wegmans' 'Veggie Party,'

Information from the Wegmans website:

Save the date! There’s a party coming up and the whole family’s invited. Wegmans’ Veggie Party is from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday March 10 at all Wegmans Food Markets. There will be music, decorations and games for kids, but the best part is the food: all scrumptious, all colorful, all – you guessed it – VEGGIES! Customers can taste samples of eight vegetable combinations made to please the whole family and see demonstrations of how easy it is to get super results at home.“Vegetables are so good for you – they provide many of the nutrients that keep us healthy,” says Wegmans Nutritionist Jennifer Felice, R.D. “But many of us don’t know about simple techniques and flavor accents that can make veggies extra delicious, or ‘craveable.’ Our culinary team went to work on creating vegetable dishes so irresistible that everybody at the table will be finishing their vegetables – with no urging needed!”

To set the party mood, greeters in veggie-inspired costumes will welcome customers coming into the store with kid-friendly samples of cut and cleaned fresh vegetables and hummus dip. Kids can pick up stickers and a clue sheet to play a scavenger hunt game that teaches them more about vegetables. Here’s what else is on tap for tasting and cooking demos: 

•         Spicy Indian Pan-Simmered Cauliflower (kids like this dish too!) – The Veggie Coach shows how pan-simmering, a cooking technique featured in the Winter 2012 issue of Wegmans Menu Magazine, is a quick way to give vegetables a whole new life. Ready in less than 15 minutes!

•        Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Carrots, Parsnips & Savory Sauce – A  Wegmans chef shows how quickly veggies can be ready to roast in the oven, and how this cooking technique mellows flavors and brings out natural sweetness, making roasted veggies a special favorite for kids.

•        Cooking Greens – Dark leafy greens are nutritional superstars. This demo shows how a little lemon juice, garlic, salt, olive oil and grated cheese turn greens like kale, Swiss chard or collards into one great-tasting dish. Practical even for busy weeknights with bags of cleaned and cut greens that streamline prep time.

•        Fresh Baby Arugula with Vinegar Spritzer – An instant-gratification salad idea that’s zesty, peppery and bursting with Vitamin A: take one bag of ready-to-serve, triple-washed baby arugula greens and accent them with Wegmans Mango Vinegar “Spritzer” for a fat-free mist of flavor with a hint of sweetness.

•        Corn with Shallot Thyme Butter – Wegmans Just-Picked Organic Frozen Corn, ready to microwave in its own bag, finished with a swirl of Shallot Thyme Butter before serving. What could be easier or yummier?

•        Butternut Squash with Baby Spinach and Craisins – A favorite combination of Wegmans customers, whether they buy it already prepared as a side dish with one of the $6 Meals or make it at home.

•        Veggie Sushi: Thai Sweet Potato Roll – New at Wegmans, this variety is made with baked sweet potato, red coconut curry sauce and avocado and rolled into a nori seaweed wrap. No fish ingredients! Wegmans uses only fresh-milled short grain rice and its private blend of sushi vinegar for a taste that rivals the best Japanese restaurant sushi. For those hesitant to try sushi before, this makes a great introduction.

 Coupons for vegetables and products featured in the demos will be given out at the Veggie Party, with many of the recipes for dishes featured in the current issue of Wegmans Menu Magazine and on Wegmans.com. Many Wegmans stores also feature “Kids in the Kitchen” classes. Three currently being offered are 

•        “Getting to the Root of It,” about how to make dishes like Honey-Roasted Root Vegetables

•        “The Secret’s in the Sauce,” about adding zip and flavor to all kinds of meals, including kid-friendly dishes such as Lo Mein & Peanut Salad

•        “Gardening 101,” about planning and planting your own garden of cucumbers, tomatoes, Swiss chard, beets and spinach

 The hands-on parent and child classes are $5 with a Shoppers Club card. For a complete schedule, visit wegmans.com/kidsinthekitchen. “As a company, we’re committed to helping customers live healthier lives,” says Felice. “That includes making smart food choices like filling half your plate with fruits and vegetables, as the newest federal dietary guidelines recommend. When vegetables taste so good that you really enjoy them, then it’s easy to do the right thing.”